BloodyElbow Writer Busted for Child Porn, Everyone Attacks BloodyElbow

On Friday, the news broke that a writer over at MMA news site BloodyElbow had been busted for child porn over the summer. Iain Kidd was the writer, he’s based out of Scotland, covered everything to do with performance-enhancing drug violations, and had been contributing to BloodyElbow for years.

He was, of course, promptly fired, and his digital footprint was scrubbed from the site.

Child porn is a pretty egregious thing, so his firing was certainly just. But because BloodyElbow has made a lot of enemies over the years, those enemies felt the time was right to attack BloodyElbow.

Here’s noted drug abuser Jon Jones piling on:

One of my biggest critics bloody elbow reporter #IainKidd was just busted for having possession of over 1000 images and videos of #ChildPornography. As a father to only daughters, I absolutely hate people like this, and try not to hate anyone. Lucky he doesn’t live in my city.

— Jon Bones Jones (@JonnyBones) December 10, 2018

Oh, and here’s fighter manager Malki Kawa doing the same:

See, we had to sit here and watch this guy comment on every fighter, ours or not, and he was doing the most disgusting thing ever. I stand by Greg hardy, jon jones, and any other guy I PERSONALLY KNOW. Let’s see if he ask for a second chance. #fuckbloodyelbow and #fuckiankidd

— malki kawa (@malkikawa) December 8, 2018

Here’s fighter manager Ali Abdel-Azziz:

For the last 5 years @bloodyelbow and all the maggots who work there have been talking shit about me, my team and my fighters. And I have dirt on all of these guys. Karma is a bitch, god is good. https://t.co/rXpbvvKAVu

— Ali Abdelaziz (@AliAbdelaziz00) December 8, 2018

Sorry, but all of this is total crap. Kidd deserves all the scorn in the world for his crimes. But BloodyElbow has for years been the watchdog the sport needs, and to paint them with the same brush Kidd is being painted with is wrong. No one knew about Kidd’s proclivities over there, and the minute it all came to light, immediate action was taken.

Deadspin hit the nail on the head with their take:

Iain Kidd, and only Iain Kidd, is to blame for what he did. That some of the most cynical gits on the internet—and some of the most powerful people in MMA—are beating down his colleagues over crimes they had no connection to and no reason to know about, for no better reason than that they don’t like being covered critically, is its own sort of disgrace.

I’ve contributed maybe two or three articles to BloodyElbow over the past decade – just for the hell of it. And I would gladly do so again. They’re good journalism.